By Aerol John Pateña/Philippine News Agency
MANILA — Sectoral offices and attached agencies of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) are on heightened alert status in preparation for the opening of classes on June 3.
Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade instructed officials of the department to ensure a safe and secure travel for students going to their respective schools, through its “Oplan Biyaheng Ayos: Balik Eskwela” initiative.
“Ayaw natin ng dagdag na aberya sa pagbabalik-eskwela ng ating mga mag-aaral. Sa pakikipagtulungan ng ating road transport at railways sectors at i-ACT (Inter-Agency Council on Traffic), titiyakin po nating may pampublikong transportasyong masasakyan ang mga estudyante’t guro para sila’y tututok na lamang sa panibagong yugto ng edukasyon (We don’t want to inconvenience our students during the school opening. We will ensure that students and teachers would be able to avail of public transport so they could focus on a new chapter of their education, with the help of our road transport and railways sectors, as well as the Inter-Agency Council on Traffic),” Tugade said in a statement on Friday.
The “Oplan Biyaheng Ayos: Balik Eskwela” began on May 27 and will last until June 8.
Help desks for commuters will be set up in major transportation hubs, such as terminals and train stations.
Transport agencies will provide regular updates on the situation of transportation facilities through their websites and social media accounts.
The management of the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) will deploy additional security personnel in all its train stations along its rail line from North Ave. to Taft Ave. and vice versa.
The MRT-3 will run 12 trains with headway time of 8.5 minutes on June 1, 2 and 8. The first train will leave the North Ave. station at 4:59 a.m., and the last train at 9:10 p.m.
The first train from Taft Ave. will depart at 5:51 a.m., and the last train at 10:01 p.m.
A total of 15 trains will run with a headway time of seven minutes on June 3-7. The first train will leave North Ave. at 4:59 a.m., and the last train at 9:10 p.m.
The first train from Taft Ave. will depart at 4:59 a.m., and the last train at 10:10 p.m.
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) will deploy more than 2,000 traffic personnel on June 3 to ensure the orderly opening of classes in Metro Manila.
A total of 2,500 traffic personnel are set for deployment before 5 a.m. on Monday until the succeeding days when other schools start to open to ensure the smooth flow of traffic in the metropolis, MMDA Chairman Danilo Lim said.
“We shall field traffic personnel in traffic-prone areas around the metropolis and monitor traffic situation on roads leading to schools so we can easily augment personnel when needed,” Lim said in a separate statement.
District traffic heads were reminded to coordinate with school authorities, barangays, and local traffic officials to discuss measures on how to ease traffic within the vicinity of schools.
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